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22 Aug 2018, 17:07
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Can any of the experts confirm/provide further details on my analysis of the attached ESR.
I recently sat the GMAT (2nd attempt) and scored a 640 Q46 V31. I am looking for areas to improve upon for one last attempt. (I scored a 550 on my first attempt.)
Quant:
1) Throughout the exam i had my timing under control. I did let it slip during the last quarter hence i had to rush.
Generally, I didn't find the questions to be too difficult but i skipped the questions that i felt would consume lot of time. This is reflected in my accuracy for the second quarter where my correct answers took a dive.
2) Geometry and Algebra need a lot of work. I knew before the test that Geometry is a weakness so i tried not to spend too long on these questions and just skipped them so i could get maximum points from my strengths. I followed a similar plan for rates and percentage questions. Again these questions were not overly difficult but I felt i couldn't solve them in 2.5-3 mins.
Overall: I feel i need to improve on finding faster ways to solve problems and increase my ability on Geometry and Algebra. Any other suggestions? My goal is to reach Q49
Verbal:
**I had two people sitting a simulation exam and they were constantly clicking for 20-30 minutes which really distracted me. I had ear plugs on as well but i couldn't focus for the first half of the verbal section. I did make a complain to the PearsonVUE. However, they suggested that i should have just raised my hand and told them. Anyways, I feel my verbal ability is not representative of this score and this is the primary reason i want to resit.
My goal is to reach V36-37.
1) To me it looks like I didn't do well on the first 9 questions. I understand this is a heavily debated subject, but the ESR to me indicates that the difficulty of the questions was not increased despite scoring well on medium level questions between 2nd to 4th quarter. I did allocate extra time for the start so it looks like I just screwed it up and the algorithm didn't give me a shot at harder questions.
2) The questions didn't feel overly difficult compared to the CATs i have taken nor wasn't I under much time pressure, especially on the later half of the test.
3) All sub-sections are on a similar level. Apart from RC inference I can't see any big areas of improvement, GMAT categorized all the areas as above average.
What are your suggestions for improvements? Should i just do 600-700 level questions? It is difficult to tell what construction/plan and analysis/critique translate too in terms of types of questions asked in CR.
My approach to questions: I am not sure if changing these will make improvements, I trust these and I am quite comfortable with them.
SC - E-gmat 3 step process.
CR - E-gmat process without the pre-thinking. Usually i can get down to 2-3 choices.
RC - My RC is little slower since i take extensive notes to keep myself engaged. I read slowly and summarize each point as required. I think i will incorporate some structure, opinion and tone into my analysis before attacking questions.
I recently sat the GMAT (2nd attempt) and scored a 640 Q46 V31. I am looking for areas to improve upon for one last attempt. (I scored a 550 on my first attempt.)
Quant:
1) Throughout the exam i had my timing under control. I did let it slip during the last quarter hence i had to rush.
Generally, I didn't find the questions to be too difficult but i skipped the questions that i felt would consume lot of time. This is reflected in my accuracy for the second quarter where my correct answers took a dive.
2) Geometry and Algebra need a lot of work. I knew before the test that Geometry is a weakness so i tried not to spend too long on these questions and just skipped them so i could get maximum points from my strengths. I followed a similar plan for rates and percentage questions. Again these questions were not overly difficult but I felt i couldn't solve them in 2.5-3 mins.
Overall: I feel i need to improve on finding faster ways to solve problems and increase my ability on Geometry and Algebra. Any other suggestions? My goal is to reach Q49
Verbal:
**I had two people sitting a simulation exam and they were constantly clicking for 20-30 minutes which really distracted me. I had ear plugs on as well but i couldn't focus for the first half of the verbal section. I did make a complain to the PearsonVUE. However, they suggested that i should have just raised my hand and told them. Anyways, I feel my verbal ability is not representative of this score and this is the primary reason i want to resit.
My goal is to reach V36-37.
1) To me it looks like I didn't do well on the first 9 questions. I understand this is a heavily debated subject, but the ESR to me indicates that the difficulty of the questions was not increased despite scoring well on medium level questions between 2nd to 4th quarter. I did allocate extra time for the start so it looks like I just screwed it up and the algorithm didn't give me a shot at harder questions.
2) The questions didn't feel overly difficult compared to the CATs i have taken nor wasn't I under much time pressure, especially on the later half of the test.
3) All sub-sections are on a similar level. Apart from RC inference I can't see any big areas of improvement, GMAT categorized all the areas as above average.
What are your suggestions for improvements? Should i just do 600-700 level questions? It is difficult to tell what construction/plan and analysis/critique translate too in terms of types of questions asked in CR.
My approach to questions: I am not sure if changing these will make improvements, I trust these and I am quite comfortable with them.
SC - E-gmat 3 step process.
CR - E-gmat process without the pre-thinking. Usually i can get down to 2-3 choices.
RC - My RC is little slower since i take extensive notes to keep myself engaged. I read slowly and summarize each point as required. I think i will incorporate some structure, opinion and tone into my analysis before attacking questions.
Attachments
Quant.pdf [134.57 KiB]
Downloaded 126 times
Verbal.pdf [143.08 KiB]
Downloaded 175 times
22 Aug 2018, 21:55
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Hi shahMeet,
While the ESR doesn't provide a lot of information, there are usually a few data points that we can use to define what went wrong (and what you should work on to score higher). Since you have the ESR, then I'll be happy to analyze it for you - I'll need to see the FULL ESR though. If you would rather not post it publicly, then you can feel free to PM or email it directly to me.
GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
While the ESR doesn't provide a lot of information, there are usually a few data points that we can use to define what went wrong (and what you should work on to score higher). Since you have the ESR, then I'll be happy to analyze it for you - I'll need to see the FULL ESR though. If you would rather not post it publicly, then you can feel free to PM or email it directly to me.
GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
23 Aug 2018, 02:52
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The ESR is very general in nature, and thus it is not a great tool to learn from. Nonetheless, here are a few things I learned from looking at your ESR and reading your post.
Quant - 1) as you noted, you had to RUSH during the last quarter, and this is also reflected in your lower success rate. This is to be avoided: divide the section into 15-minute segments, and check every 15 minutes if you have solve d enough questions or not. if you are too slow - this means you have to skip some questions (not just the next one, but the next really hard one you see).
2) as you need, algebra and geometry need work. The question now is - what kind of work? If it's simply a matter of not having a good enough grasp of the material - then by all means, review it again. if however, the issue is more that you get confused/ take too long/ make many silly mistakes - maybe there's something in your answer strategies you need to change.
in general, there are three such strategies:
for more information on this, check us out at Exampal.com - we have a free tutorial which explains these concepts more deeply.
Verbal -
1) as you note, it makes sense that since you started off somewhat poorly, this set a low ceiling for what your maximum score could be - the exam adapted and showed you only medium questions form that point on. The conclusion: put a little extra effort into the first 10 questions.
2) there is a LOT of variation in your sped through the section, once again, it's important to be more measured about this, and have a similar average throughout.
3) don't just keep solving 600-700 questions. Rather, take time to analyse questions you've already wrong. Similarly to what I said with the quant, ask yourself why it is you are getting them wrong, and then tackle that issue.
I'd be happy to try an answer if you have any more questions.
Quant - 1) as you noted, you had to RUSH during the last quarter, and this is also reflected in your lower success rate. This is to be avoided: divide the section into 15-minute segments, and check every 15 minutes if you have solve d enough questions or not. if you are too slow - this means you have to skip some questions (not just the next one, but the next really hard one you see).
2) as you need, algebra and geometry need work. The question now is - what kind of work? If it's simply a matter of not having a good enough grasp of the material - then by all means, review it again. if however, the issue is more that you get confused/ take too long/ make many silly mistakes - maybe there's something in your answer strategies you need to change.
in general, there are three such strategies:
Precise
using the information in the question to arrive at an exact answer using “high school” abilities. These could be - simplifying an equation or applying a grammatical rule.Alternative
using tools that will get us quickly to the answer, even if we can’t tell how to get there precisely. These could be things such as using the answers, estimating the result, relying on geometric symmetry, and many more.Logical
implementing a logical rule ‘from outside’ which sheds the question in new light and gets us to the answer quickly.for more information on this, check us out at Exampal.com - we have a free tutorial which explains these concepts more deeply.
Verbal -
1) as you note, it makes sense that since you started off somewhat poorly, this set a low ceiling for what your maximum score could be - the exam adapted and showed you only medium questions form that point on. The conclusion: put a little extra effort into the first 10 questions.
2) there is a LOT of variation in your sped through the section, once again, it's important to be more measured about this, and have a similar average throughout.
3) don't just keep solving 600-700 questions. Rather, take time to analyse questions you've already wrong. Similarly to what I said with the quant, ask yourself why it is you are getting them wrong, and then tackle that issue.
I'd be happy to try an answer if you have any more questions.
